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November 07, 2012

Guest Post | 5 Steps to Start a Homemade Beauty Business


Eliza Morgan writes for www.businesscreditcards.com and is passionate about small business, education and natural living. She strives to provide her readers with interesting and useful advice and information. Please email her at elizamorgan856@gmail.com with any questions or comments.


Always wanted to start your own business? Love beauty products? Why not make your own and sell them out of your home? As difficult as it may sound, there is actually a very simple process to get going, and the end result could be fun and financially rewarding. With so many consumers looking for natural, less-processed products, there is no better time to start creating and selling your own special recipes. While it does take some planning, experimentation and investment, the road to starting your own beauty business can by much less troublesome than you may have thought. Check out these steps for doing it right:

1. Narrow your focus.

When you're just starting out with a home business, the last thing you want to do is get in over your head. The first step to successfully selling homemade products on your own is to narrow your scope and pick just a few things that will be well-received. Trying to create an entire beauty line when you just start out is probably not the most feasible thing, so figure out what you really love and stick to those items. Maybe lotions, face masks, or soaps are your thing. Choose 2-5 products that you will be able to create from fairly basic ingredients and start from there. The more interest builds toward your brand, the more you can branch out into other areas of beauty.

2. Do some product test runs.

Homemade beauty products run the gamut between simple and super complicated. Some easy soaps and face washes require only two or three ingredients and can easily be whipped up in half an hour. Other products, like complex serums and face scrubs may take a little longer to perfect. The key is to take the time to get your products exactly right before you start selling. Do trial runs for every product you wish to sell, and write down what you did every step of the way. When you hit just the right formula, you will have everything set up to re-create it.


3. Buy ingredients in bulk. 

Once you know exactly what you want to make and what you'll need, go ahead and take the plunge to buy your ingredients in bulk. You will save tons of money in the long run this way. Even though it may seem like a huge chunk of cash now, the investment will be well worth it. And, if you want to run a legitimate business, you need to be prepared to create orders at a moment's notice. This means always having the ingredients you need in stock.

4. Advertise.

Once you have all your ingredients ready to go and have made a few products to sell, it's time to start advertising like crazy. One of the best places to do this is online. Go to all the websites and forums that got you started on natural beauty products (or beauty in general) in the first place, and see if there are areas to peddle your wares. Look for shopping sites, like Etsy, where you can create an online store. Create a Facebook and Twitter account for your business. Make sure to have your friends and family spread the word. And, the absolute best way to get people talking? Get them hooked on your products!



5. Make products as orders come in.

Because homemade beauty products have lower shelf lives than store-bought products that contain preservatives, it's not a good idea to make more products than you know you will sell. Even if you're positive about your future sales outlook, you will waste tons of money by using up all your supplies to make products that could end up sitting around your house collecting dust and going bad. If your products are simple enough and you have the recipes down, you can always make batches as orders come in. Or, you can make a small amount of each product you sell and just make more gradually.

Interested in being a guest blogger? Please let me know!

6 comments:

  1. This is really informative. I've purchased from a lot of homemade beauty stores on etsy and think it's such a cool idea. To me, it seems like one of the hardest parts to being successful would be the advertising, because there are so many homemade stores out there now, it seems like it would definitely take some creativity. Btw - Love the Holiday banner, Gaby!

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  2. Those are some really helpful tips, thanks XOXO

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  3. This was a great post. I thought about making my own body lotions. Maybe I'll take the plunge...
    Xo

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  4. Very interesting post. Bet a lot of beauty bloggers have thought of this. I totally agree with No. 5.

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  5. @vickykoala : I'm glad you found this post helpful!

    @Catherine (@bcrueltyfree) : I agree 100%, I also think this would be the most difficult part, not to mention that you would need some budget! I'M glad you like my banner (:

    @Venus Loves Virgo : You're welcome Venus!

    @MaviDeniz: I know it's easier than it seems, but I'm mostly lazy and scared too ahah!

    @GirlieBlogger@Beauty Fashion Blog Seattle : Thanks! I agree too.

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